Chandigarh: Trial in US woman rape case begins, 4 testify

The district court is also awaiting the orders of the High Court, where the Chandigarh Police had moved a plea to record the statement of the victim through video conferencing. The next date of hearing at the High Court is December 14.

THE TRIAL in the three-year-old rape case of the US woman commenced in the court of Additional District and Sessions Judge Poonam R Joshi on Wednesday.

The ADJ court had been issuing summons to the victim and the doctor who got her medical examination conducted in France for recording their statements in the court.

The trial was initiated with four prosecution witnesses on Wednesday. They are Dr Jaskaran Singh of Government Multi-Specialty Hospital, Sector 16, who conducted the medical examination of accused Baldev Singh after his arrest at Sector 22 dispensary; Nidhi Sharma, Assistant Professor of PU French Department who translated the medical report of victim from French into English; Manjeet Singh, an official of the Registration and Licensing Authority (RLA), who issued the temporary number to the autorickshaw used by the accused; and Sham Sharma, an official of the

TATA motor agency, who had been verified by the police during investigation in search of the autorickshaw.

Although the court has issued summons thrice to the victim and Dr Kron in the USA, they are yet to record their statements. The matter has been adjourned for hearing on December 17, when the only witness in the case whom the victim met — and who later identified the accused autorickshaw driver — will testify in the court.

The district court is also awaiting the orders of the High Court, where the Chandigarh Police had moved a plea to record the statement of the victim through video conferencing. The next date of hearing at the High Court is December 14.

Advocate Meenu Jajoria, defence counsel, said that the accused is still in judicial custody. “We are waiting for the victim to record her statements and get the test identification parade done, so that case can get clarity,” the advocate said.

The charges have been framed against accused Baldev Singh under sections 328 (causing hurt by means of poison, etc, with intent to commit an offence), 342 (punishment for wrongful confinement), 366 (kidnapping, abducting or inducing woman to compel her to marriage), 376 (punishment for rape), 392 (punishment for robbery) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code.

As per the complaint of the victim in her email, she had come to India on a tourist visa in 2015 to visit Haridwar and other places. From India, she was scheduled to go to France. On the night when the incident happened, she met accused Baldev, an auto-rickshaw driver, who asked her to find a reasonable hotel room. Baldev then took her to Kharar in the room of Jaswinder, where he and Jaswinder allegedly raped her. The accused then dropped her at the Sector 43 ISBT the next morning. From there, she left for Haridwar and from there for France.